Energy drinks are bad for your heart, says international study

Energy drink consumption can lead to high blood pressure, increase in heart rate and serious cardiovascular risks, a latest international study by the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) showed.Sushmi Dey | TNN | November 10, 2015, 05:38 IST

NEW DELHI: Energy drink consumption can lead to high blood pressure, increase in heart rate and serious cardiovascular risks, a latest international study by the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) showed.

The study highlighted that even one energy drink can cause potentially harmful spikes in both stress hormone levels and blood pressure in young, healthy adults.

Researchers and doctors said the risks are likely to be related to excess of caffeine and other stimulants present in such drinks.

"Energy drinks contain caffeine and other stimulants which increase stress on cardiovascular system. Frequent use of such stimulant increases extra burden on heart. So chronic users of such drinks are prone to heart problems," said Dr Kewal Krishan, program in-charge heart transplant and ventricular assist devices at Max Hospital.

Experts maintained though the findings are significant, they need larger studies to validate the results.

The researchers examined the effect of energy drink consumption on hemodynamic changes, such as blood pressure and heart rate. Participants were fasting and abstained from caffeine and alcohol for 24 hours prior to each study day. Serum levels of caffeine, plasma glucose and norepinephrine (noradrenaline) were measured and blood pressure and heart rate were obtained at baseline and 30 minutes after drink ingestion.

Results of the study showed caffeine levels remained unchanged after the placebo drink, but increased significantly after energy drink consumption. Consumption of the energy drink elicited a 6.2% increase in systolic blood pressure, whereas diastolic blood pressure increased by 6.8%. Consumption of energy drink also increased average blood pressure level by 6.4%.

Doctors in India say there is an increasing trend of consuming these commercially available energy drinks, mainly among youths and this can amount to serious health risks.

"There is a trend of increasing intake of energy drinks before difficult task like exams and sports; however, this could lead to increase in autonomic nerve system responses as demonstrated in this study, and thus could jeopardise task performance instead of easing it. Further, repeated intake will increase blood pressure and possibility of heart disease," says Dr Anoop Misra, a leading endocrinologist and chairman, Fortis C-Doc.

According to Dr Misra, mixing of energy drinks with alcohol can be doubly dangerous.

Studies conducted by the same research group earlier this year had also showed similar results suggesting energy drinks may have a negative affect on heart.

Only in India the healthcare financing is very small when compared to the financing by the other forces rather than the patient himself or herself paying out of pocket. Having 70-75% of the expenses as out-of-pocket, in my opinion, is not a right approach to managing healthcare in a country where the patients tend to sub-optimally purchase healthcare if he/she has to pay out-of-pocket.